“The Mother is the Monster” — an Exploration of Monstrous Matriarchs in Modern Horror Fiction and Film by Tabatha Wood Women in horror frequently get a very bad deal. They are punished, constantly and consistently, for no other reason than their gender identity. Portrayed either as weak and fragile victims, or gratuitously over-sexualised, often their only purpose is to be assaulted, lusted over or both. Enter: the Monstrous Mother. She may be possessive, narcissistic, overbearing, jealous, abusive, homicidal or sexually-oppressed. The very worst kind of monstrous mother is all of these things at once. Horror has a special relationship with its audiences — it relies on emotions and must illicit…

Mothering the Horrific By R. J. Joseph Blinding pain vibrates throughout, snatching the remnants of my breath. Soiled demons tear at my spirit as they claw their beings from deep within my body. I am left a revenant, as they refuse to allow me solace even after their evacuation. They haunt me, expending my soul as they insist I give all. I am never free of them until they have depleted me and gone out to seek other forms of sustenance. I could be talking about motherhood here…but I’m not. As horrific as pregnancy and childbirth can be, I’d only characterize my children as demons on every other Monday, especially…

Creeping from the Womb By Kristi DeMeester In the past, I have said that motherhood is the most monstrous thing you can do. I’ve now been a mother for five years, and I still believe that. Female bodies have often been treated as objects of horror. Our monthly blood; the infinite mysteries we carry in our wombs; the pain and violence of childbirth; our bellies swollen and unrecognizable even after an impassive doctor has pressed a squalling child into our arms. We turn away from it because it is primal. Because of all the things in our world that have been lessened, made more delicate, this act of birth and…